Most wanted suspect found incarcerated

HORRY COUNTY, SC (WMBF) - Thirty-year-old Joseph Henry Thompkins is wanted by the Horry County Sheriff's Office on 24 warrants related to theft and check forgery.

But after digging deeper, WMBF News found out he's already serving time for the crimes at the Kirkland Correctional Institution in Columbia.

According to Thompkins' girlfriend, he stole several Conway National Bank checks from her and forged them for around $600 to finance his drug habit. Thompkins is expected to be released from jail in late January, and his girlfriend tells us she hopes his time behind bars has rehabilitated him.

Meanwhile, the Horry county Sheriff's Office says forgery is a crime few criminals get away with.

"There's surveillance cameras. There's videos; we can go back and see exactly what time this check was cashed, who presented it and be able to trace it because the victim typical knows the person," says Sgt. Jeff Benton.